More California Gun Control: Bill to Ban Open Carry of Rifles & Shotguns

The California state assembly approved Anthony Portantino’s bill that would make it illegal to openly carry unloaded shotguns and rifles on the streets. So, more gun control laws in California. Who here is surprised? Anyone? Anyone?

An earlier bill spearheaded by Portantino banned the open carry of handguns. This new bill is just finishing what he started.

There will be a few exceptions, of course: hunters and police will be able to carry weapons, and there will be select locations where the ban does not apply. For the most part, though, you won’t be able to openly carry a gun in CA and that’s all there is to it.

Portantino said that open carry creates bad situations, and that “it wastes time, money, and attention when police have to roll-out and respond to unnecessary calls.” While we generally don’t agree with Portantino’s legislation, we have to agree with him on this point. It is definitely a tremendous waste of police resources to require them to respond to harmless, legal activities.

There is a faint glimmer of hope, however, as the bill has not yet been made a law; an approval by the State Assembly is just one step in the legislative process. Portantino is optimistic, though, “This bill just makes sense. Sooner or later, somebody’s going to get hurt. If you see somebody walking around a mall or main street with a shotgun, it’s pretty intimidating. It’s unnecessary and it’s just going to lead to trouble.”

Portantino did not mention if he was also planning to ban other things because they are intimidating, such as pitbulls, people riding motorcycles in groups of five or more, tattoos of angry-looking skulls, and the phrase “What you looking at?”